This study analyzed driver's eye movements while driving on public roads under different lighting conditions. Four driving environments were examined: 1) a segment of highway without street lighting, 2) a segment of highway with street lighting, 3) the approach to a stop-sign controlled intersection without street lighting, and 4) the approach to signalized intersection with street lighting. This study used eye movement data that had been previously collected for 11 drivers navigating a pre-set route at night, and evaluated the probabilities of drivers looking at specific areas on theroad scene using binary logistic regression modeling. Drivers eye movements were affected by different highway features (segment vs. intersection)and peripheral environments (presence/absence of street lighting). Drivers made more glances to the center of the travel lane while driving on the segments and under street lighting. The probabilities of drivers looking at locations off the eye-tracker's screen (away from the roadway) decreasedwhen approaching intersections. Drivers eye movements significantly changed on close approach to the intersections, particularly when approaching the signalized intersection with the more complex traffic environment.
Abstract